


Be Here Now

by amilner24



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Gen, Season 3 rewrite
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-05-05
Updated: 2015-05-05
Packaged: 2018-03-29 03:42:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 593
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3880942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amilner24/pseuds/amilner24
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>As Starling City settles into a calm after the damage brought by past attacks, Team Arrow wraps up warm for the storm that they know will come. Little did they know that no matter how much they brace themselves, foundations will be uprooted and devastation will be inevitable.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Be Here Now

**Author's Note:**

> Hello all. I know I might be stretching the bounds of fan fiction but here's my attempt at rewriting season 3. Clearly, an AU where:  
> \- Thea isn't Malcolm's kid but is aware of her brother's real identity.  
> \- Thea and Roy reconnected towards between season 2 and season 3.  
> \- Sara isn't dead.  
> \- The Queens are  
> \- Felicity didn't work at Tech Village and has yet to encounter Ray Palmer
> 
> The end notes explain why I made these changes. I don't own anything and this is not beta'd (will revisit and make corrections as needed).

No one wants to say it, but Starling City is starting to feel normal again. Well, as normal as a City that was plagued by a man-made earthquake machine and an attack by Mirakuru drugged super-soldiers in a span of two years. There are still crimes to be solved and criminals to be caught. However, there is an unspoken teamwork between SCPD and The Arrow - an acceptance of sorts. The Arrow (with the help of his team) catches the criminals for the police to do their bit to maintain law and order. Starling City, slowly but surely, is in a rebuilding phase.

The members of Team Arrow, even the extended ones, have their hands full. 

Oliver busies himself with regaining Queen Consolidated and being the Arrow. He also checks in on Thea and Roy who decided to rekindle their relationship. He begrudgingly agreed that the two need each other more than ever. Thea, with the loss of their mother and running the club, needs Roy. The latter needs Thea to ground and help him find himself again. Oliver had to put the kibosh on the pair’s insistence to take part in Team Arrow activities – for now. There will be a time to revisit this. He tells them, he would like to see some semblance of stability before they get involved in Team Arrow.

John prepares for the arrival of the Digglet. One night, during dinner, he reveals that he and Lyla are expecting a girl. They refuse to reveal the name just yet, much to Felicity’s disappointment. John still joins Oliver in the field. This became a point of contention due to his impending fatherhood. He pledges his commitment to the team and argues that now he has more reason to fight for the safety of the city and a bigger incentive to come home unscathed (or as unscathed as he could be). Oliver acquiesces.

Felicity, for her part, has upgraded the Foundry after it was compromised by Slade. It wasn’t long before Kord Enterprises inquired about her availability for a consulting gig. She agreed to a temporary assignment as being the IT person for the Arrow doesn’t provide insurance (or a salary). Felicity is working with Oliver to regain Queen Consolidated. Stagg Enterprises, Daggett Industries, Palmer Technologies and AmerTek Industries are all bidding to take over QC. It seems bleak, but they won’t give up. They just need to keep the board on their side and have their faith that Oliver is able to reestablish QC as a corporate powerhouse with a leader who can steer said company to the right direction.

The Team Arrow dynamic is still the same if not stronger and the unspoken need to protect each other has grown. Oliver, John, and Felicity prepare themselves for the eventual expansion of their team. They don’t dismiss the idea but all agree that with Roy, Thea, Sara, and even Laurel in the know, there needs to be delineation of responsibilities and roles, when that time comes. Felicity promises to prepare an organizational chart to the amusement of the two gentlemen. The trio has built the groundwork for this team and if the summer is anything to go by, they will continue to strengthen it. 

Recent history has not been kind to Starling City. The calm is welcomed, but not trusted. Team Arrow and their extended members know they need to wrap up warm for any storm that may come. Little did they know that no matter how much they brace themselves, foundations will be uprooted and devastation will be inevitable.

**Author's Note:**

> There are so many things about season 3 that I just didn't like. To start, I hate the "twist" of Thea's paternity (I know it's season 2) since it led to the mess that is season 3. I don't mind Malcolm being alive but suddenly being a father to Thea (and yes it was to save his arse), I just felt Tommy's death was cheapened.
> 
> I wasn't a fan of Sara dying and Laurel's fast track to being BC. If Sara went back to the league, I could perhaps accept Laurel trying to train to become a similar guardian figure for Starling City. One of the things that irked me was the "it started with the three of us and it's time to get back to that" towards the end of season 2 only for us to see Diggle and Felicity be sidelined. I understand that with Diggle being a dad, Oliver wouldn't want him to take more risks but it just is frustrating to see a trained ex-military man to be pushed to the side in favour of Roy and Laurel. I also felt like Felicity was pushed to the side for the Ray story line. I'm not hating on Roy and Laurel (and even Ray) but would want to see some sort of natural progression to their place on the team.
> 
> With Malcolm and Nyssa, they could have also used the Lazarus Pit for Tommy and Sara, respectively (complications be damned).
> 
> These are MY frustrations with season 3, which I think is a mess and took out what I liked about and what got me invested with the show (Original Team Arrow, Oliver Queen being the main hero). 
> 
> Off the soapbox I go, but let me know what you think!


End file.
